The Birds Did Sing The Morning After
by NekoNoKitiKiti
Summary: General Cross finds himself completely confused and having to piece his life back together from a hospital bed, much to his annoyance. Waiting to recover from a bullet to the head, he finds his way back somehow. But where's Allen? What's happened in the General's absence? {No pairings, Parental!Crossen later on :3 Might not be as sweet and fl- It's me, it might be sweet and fluffy}
1. Waking Up To Confusion

He blinked in the blinding sunlight, dazed, confused, and with a splitting headache...

He registered that he was in a hospital ward... That didn't explain much...

He looked down to find an IV in his arm; something was irritating his face, and with the limb that had no IV attached, he reached up to his face, and found a bandage covering half of it. Well, that was what was irritating him and why he was in a hospital...

A nurse came running. 'Oh good, you're finally awake! We were beginning to worry, you took a nasty bullet to the head, you're lucky to be alive, really, it was extremely close.'

'Mmmmmmhh...' He blinked some more. '... I can't think clearly... My head hurts... Where... Where am I? How did I get here?... Better yet, who am I? I don't... Remember anything...'

'It'll take a while for you to remember, especially small details, so just relax; you can't really do much else while that's healing.'

He went to touch the bandage again, and saw his arm was shaky as he lifted it.

The nurse spoke again. 'Yeah, you'll have to rehabilitate your movements, but that's the easiest part, so you'll be moving again in no time!'

He felt like he could think more clearly now, so he asked about his headache. 'I have a splitting headache; is there anything I can take, or am I already on too much... Whatever it it?'

The nurse looked at the chart on the end of the bed. 'The word is 'medicine' and... Yes, you're on waaaay too much to give you more, but one is a heavy narcotic, and its around time to give it to you again; you must have woken up because it wore off...'

'Narcotic?..'

'It'll make ya go to sleep when you take it.' She smiled wide.

'That would be great...'

The nurse checked the clock on the wall at the end of the ward and left. She came back with a syringe. 'Well, here's your narcotic; you shouldn't have to take this for much longer.'

The nurse gave him the shot in the arm without the IV, which happened to be his left arm; there was something important about a left arm, but he couldn't put his finger on it...

* * *

A few days passed with this as the schedule, that he would wake for an hour and then fall back into sleep when the nurse gave him the narcotic, but he woke suddenly today.

He jumped awake and could only say and think one thing, even though he didn't understand why.

'...Allen...'

The nurse assigned to him ran over, trying to stop him from getting out of bed and pulling his IV out; it proved to be easy enough, but he still tried to explain why he had to leave.

'Allen... My Idiot, I have to find my Idiot.'

The nurse tried to calm him down. 'Well, first why don't we say who you're looking for, besides just a name...'

He looked up at her a little confused. 'I don't remember anything but a name, and that I called him Idiot all the time... There was more to the name, Idiot something... But, I don't remember anything else... well, I remember another name, Tim, but nothing about that name either...'

The nurse sat down on the edge of the bed, this might be a long conversation.

'Do you think they were the names of your children, maybe? But if that were the case, they would be looking for you...'

He looked down in thought for a moment, then looked back at the nurse. 'No... That's not right, I remember having a lot of... Mistresses, if that's what you want to call them, and I don't remember having a kid that was mine, just a kid that I took care of... I can't remember if that was 'Allen' or not...'

'Well, it'll all come back to you in time; today's the last day for you to take your narcotic, so you'll have a lot more time to piece everything together.'

The nurse stood up to go about her day.

'How long do I have to stay in here?' The nurse turned back to look at him.

'Until you're healed, with remembering everything and physically.' The nurse smiled at him and left for the time being.

* * *

Just a little intro to a new series :3 It's what I think could have been after Cross got shot. I tried to make it realistic, I figure someone who had been shot in the head would forget some stuff... Or _is_ that the reason he's forgotten stuff? I suppose we'll see... :3 We'll see Allen and people later on, but it's just Cross for right now :3


	2. Commotion!

He woke again to new revelations, just as he did every morning. And, just as he did every morning, he talked to his nurse about them.

She walked over on this sunny morning and greeted him. 'Morning; anything new?'

He sat up in bed; he wasn't far from the large window that allowed the warm morning sunlight in, and he now basked in the warm rays. A few days previous, he had remembered his typical morning routine of tanning, and he hated the fact he couldn't continue it, being bedridden and all. So he enjoyed the sunshine as a temporary replacement.

' I remember a hand symbol, like this,' On his left hand, he curled up his pinky, ring finger, and thumb, leaving his other two fingers stretched out right up against each other. 'But, I don't know how it connects, I mean, I remember a girl's name, and this makes me think of her, but it isn't clear... Then again, everything is blurry; I think I used to fight a lot, I had a gun, but...' He frowned slightly, as he usually did when the seemingly huge piece of remembered information didn't prove to be as impacting on others as he felt it would or should be.

The nurse distractedly answered as she looked at the clipboard attached to the end of the bed. 'Ah... Its a bit annoying not knowing your name...' She frowned. 'Do you remember anything about your name, perchance?'

He looked up in thought. '...Maria... Her name is similar to mine...' He comically slouched in frustration. '...But I don't remember how...'

When he looked back up, the nurse was in thought. 'Maria... Ah! Marian!'

His face brightened. 'That's it, that's my second name, last name... surname, that's the word.' He nodded and smiled approvingly.

The nurse cheerily wrote it down, and began the next phase. 'Now then, your christian name...'

'Christian name...' He looked up to see what any good catholic nurse might wear, a rosary.

His smile became even bigger. 'Cross.'

The nurse looked around, confused. 'Cross?..'

'My christian name, its Cross.' He felt accomplished, remembering his name; the unsettling feeling of not knowing who he was had started to eat at him, but no longer.

The nurse chuckled as she wrote down his full name. '...Oh, the irony...'

As the nurse left, he settled back into his pillow and decided he deserved a nap in the noonday sunlight, besides, there wasn't anything better to do.

* * *

After several more days, he was finally taken off bed rest, and so his movement improved exponentially.

On one particular day, there was a commotion at the end of the ward closest to the door; several people were being hospitalized while several more were buzzing around like bees, only to get in the nurses' way. They were all clad similarly, and Cross' personal nurse looked at him oddly when he spoke his mind.

'...Finders.' He realized afterward that the nurse had no clue what he was talking about, and that it was a bit odd that the term made perfect sense to him and came naturally.

Once the commotion calmed down, he got out of bed and walked toward the crowd, only to be pointed at and whispered about in shock as he came closer. After a moment, all the finders looked at him, mortified.

One of the bedridden ones spoke quietly, as if he would be ridiculed for seeing something imaginary and drawing attention to it. 'Ge...General.. General Marian?..'

Cross dipped his head. 'Mm. That seems about right.'

The finder spoke again. 'H... How long have you been here?..'

Cross shrugged lightly. 'Mm, maybe a month. Nasty ol' bullet wound, put me to sleep for a few days there.' He smiled widely and gently rapped the bandaged side of his head. When he opened his eyes again, the finders were paler than they had been, if that was even possible.

The finder found his voice for a third time. 'No... That can't be right... You... You were shot over a year ago...'

And time stopped.

* * *

This series is turning out to be waaay shorter than I wanted it to be...

But, a nice cliffhanger to make me want to write the next chapter, plus to make people want to read on :3

Lol, reviews are nice~ Please review~ Thank you to those who read, follow, favorite, review, all that stuff XD


	3. Enter, Komui

All he could hear was his heartbeat; he had blocked out everything but that and his thoughts.

A whole month of trying to remember... To be told it couldn't be possible? Had he... Made up everything? It couldn't be coincident that he knew who these people were... Could it?

He felt insecure again, so confused, so wrong, so... Angry; how could they have the audacity to snatch away his identity? Again.

He somehow made it back to his bed and continued to block out the world by curling up in a hurtfully depressed state.

* * *

About a week later, when the finders had begun to be fully recovered from whatever had befallen them, Cross was still sullen over the confusion, and just as he was about to curl up into another fitful nap, another commotion came.

The double doors leading into the ward swung open and an asian man with shoulder length black hair that curled at the ends stormed in with a determined look on his face; he scanned the room and made his way towards the one he had interest in. Cross hadn't been paying attention, as he was reading a book before napping, and only noticed the man when he saw a shadow in his peripheral vision and began hearing sniffles. Before he could look up, the shadow had thrown itself onto him, and he could hear it fullfledgedly crying into his shoulder, hugging him tightly. A minute later, when the crying had subsided, the man let go of Cross and sat on the edge of the bed, still on the edge of tears.

'I'm sorry, Cross... -sniff- When one of the finders told me they had found you, I had to make sure... I've spoken to the doctor, even he says its a miracle you're alive... But, it really doesn't match up; he said when you were brought here, the wound was fresh, but its like the finders said to you, its been over a year, close to two years now...'

'I was worried they were mistaken, most of them haven't actually seen you and... Well, the odds really were low... I'm just glad you're safe. Everything's turned for the worst at the Order...'

Cross thought for a few moments; he remembered Komui. He sighed.

'...You really think you're my mother, don't you?'

Komui looked confused for a moment then laughed; this was Cross alright. He held back the urge to hug Cross again and instead simply shifted closer.

He dropped his voice before speaking. 'Like I said, everything's turned for the worst at the Order; Levellier keeps such a strict tab on everything we say and do, and our makeshift family just keeps getting smaller and smaller, that's why-'

Cross cut him off. 'Komui, you of all people should know I don't consider the Order my family. After all, it was someone from Central that shot me.'

'I know, but... Wait, you remember who shot you?'

'Well, not a name, but someone from Central, I know that...'

Komui sighed. '...But still, we lose people so often now... Johnny left, then Kanda... And Allen...'

Cross tensed at his apprentice's name. 'Allen... Where's Allen?'

'Well...He...He escaped...'

* * *

'He...Escaped? Komui, I've been gone for two years, like Hell I know what you're talking about.'

Komui sighed; it was still a touchy topic, especially with how attached he and Lenalee were to Allen. 'Well... Allen was on a mission with a group of Third Exorcists... Exorcists that are part Akuma; instead of using Innocence to fight, they use the Akuma part of them. It happened so fast... Allen and Timcanpy went berserk and attacked some of the Third Exorcists, and, they died. Levellier was furious; he used it as an endorsement that Allen was dangerous, even though we all knew that Allen would only attack an ally if he had good reason. Levellier had him locked away, and the last we saw him... Lenalee said he was escaping, with two Noah...'

Cross didn't know what to say; his little apprentice had left? Just gone, _with_ the enemy? There was only one explanation in his mind...

Cross tried to get up but, once again, was pushed back down. 'I have to go after him.'

Komui got up to leave after he was sure Cross wouldn't rebelliously get up again. 'I know, but you need to heal the rest of the way first. The doctor said it should only be a few more weeks now, that you heal much faster than most people do. Relax, once you come back, there won't be any relaxing like this; Levellier'll probably be on both our backs once you get back...'

Before Komui could leave, Cross voiced his opinion. 'Don't tell Levellier about my return...I want to be free to go after Allen once I get Judgment back.'

Komui nodded. 'Mm. I think that'll be best.'

* * *

Yay, chapter three :3 I tried not to use a cliffhanger this time, though, I did want to stop after the 'He escaped.' part, but then the chapter would have been way too short.

...This chapter... Is it just me, or does it seem like onesided KomuixCross? Its not supposed to be, but I can see Komui spazzing out over finding Cross, so he might seem a little more attached to Cross than he should be... It might just be me...


	4. Trapped, Restless, Caught

Allen was preparing to go out and perform; returning to Liverpool and Mother had been a good choice so far. He could go out and perform on the street, both earning money and keeping a low profile while keeping his conscience clear. He hadn't had to worry about the Order, and the only Noah he had been worrying about since he escaped the Order was the one that constantly attacked him from the inside...

But, that was the reason going back to clowning had been so important to Allen; when he was concentrating on one or two things, Neah seemed to be thwarted in his efforts to take Allen's mind.

* * *

Allen had had a wonderful time performing, as usual; the kids had been easily entertained, and Neah hadn't even though to take over Allen while he was out. 

As he headed back home, his mind wandered; he thought of his situation, why it was happening to him of all unlucky people, and why his master had simply disappeared. Again. Of all opportune times. Allen remembered having to peel Timcanpy from his master's room several times a day for months; Tim had especially become attached to the window sill, where the blood had soaked into the wood. Even now, while they were at Mother's Tim would curl up in Allen's pillow and pout...

But, he was always happy when Allen returned, and as Allen walked in the door of his room, Timcanpy greeted him by rocketing himself into Allen's face, causing him to fall back onto the now closed door. Tim fell into Allen's hands and nuzzled his chest; he had grow so much bigger than when Cross had left him with Allen... Or more, Allen wondered why Tim had decided to shrink down to this size instead of being that small; he had been about the size of a normal room of a house when they had escaped...

_About the same size as when I met Master..._

But, thinking of his escape, hadn't Tyki and Road been there? He had been so worried about getting to safety from the Order, Apocryphos, and God knew what else, he hadn't really noticed them leaving or trying to keep him with them... It gave him a bad feeling; they were Noah, but they were still people, no matter how inhumane or anti-humanity they were...

Allen got up, still holding Tim, and laid down on his bed; a nap couldn't hurt...

-

Mother knocked on Allen's door. 'Allen, dinner is ready.'

Silence.

'Allen, I know you're hungry, when are you not?'

Silence again.

Mother opened the door and saw Allen laying on his bed, his arms crossed over his face, as they normally were when Allen took a light nap during the day or evening. Timcanpy was blissfully snuggled into his side. Nothing seemed wrong.

Until a wide grin broke over his face and after a snicker, a very out of character, singsongy voice spoke.

'Allen's not here~.'

* * *

Not much had happened, and Cross really wanted out of the hospital. He was tired of being around so many people, especially so many who were filthy bastards. Well, his attitude was back completely...

His wound had healed, and quite nicely, he thought. He'd most definitely have a scar, but hopefully when he got out, he could make a new mask; even though it would look the same, it would still cover up the new scar, as the aim had been far enough away from the center of his face. For now, though, he was pleased to find that his hair still covered his right side of his face.

And he still desperately wanted out. He had thought a couple of times now to use Maria and runaway, but he decided that having the Order back him up in secret could be worth the wait. After all, he couldn't get Judgment back until either he showed up at HQ himself, possibly showing himself to Levellier and condemning himself to be stuck there, or waiting until Komui brought it to him, avoiding detection.

-

Which was exactly what Komui was doing. Hopefully it wouldn't seem too obvious what he was doing, and besides, Hevlaska had enough reason to keep the fact that Cross was alive a secret, especially from Levellier.

'Hevlaska, I need Judgment, please.' 

'Komui... Have you found... an accommodator?'

'Yes, I've found...' He was trying to avoid saying 'him.' 'Yes, I've found one.'

And with that, Hevlaska gave the Innocence over with no more questions.

* * *

Komui walked back to his office, carrying Judgment carefully, just as he would any other Innocence, when he was called out.

'Studying General Marian's Innocence, are we, Komui?'

A shiver went up Komui's spine; how the hell had he got here?

Komui swallowed hard before turning. 'I-Inspector...'

'Well?' Komui could tell by the look on Levellier's face that he wasn't getting away without further explanation.

* * *

But he tried nonetheless. 'Yes. I am.'

Okay, so chapter four! :3 Bleh, I don't know if it's just me but FF wouldn't let me have italics or the intermission bars in the copy-paste upload, so I tried just uploading it, so that's why there are dashed lines, (if it doesn't decide to fix that when its up...) but technology being odd aside...

lol, sorry if I'm once again cruel with cliffhangers... So yup, thanks for following, faving, and reviewing :D


End file.
